Plant and flower modeling outfit



PLANT AND FLOWER MODELING OUTFIT Original Filed May 20. 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet l I 22 INVENTOR.

Tom C. Graham,

W KuA/MW ATTORNEYS.

May 24, 1927.

T. c. GRAHAM PLANT AND FLOWER MODELING ouwn Origina1 Filed MayZO 1925 2 sheets-sheet IN V EN TI'OR. Tom C Graham.

Patented May 24, 1927.

v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

i TOM C. GRAHAM, F ALBANY, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR 'IO EMBOSSING' COMPANY,

OF ALBANY, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

- PLANT AND FLOWER MODELING ourrrrr.

Appl i cation filed May20, 1925, Seria1 in. 31,585.] Renewed April 12, 1927.

The chiefobject of this invention is to provide an. outfit of materialsfor use of vchildren, as an educational toy, with which the child can make models of plants or 5 fiowers,- preferablylife size and in shapes andcolors closely resembling nature so that the benefits. derivedffrom use of the toy,

will not bellimited topractice in manual dexterity or skill but will also include enflowers In carrying out the invention in the referred manner I provide'a supply of pet-r s of Various shapes, sizes andcolors, simulating selected flowers, as for example the commondaisy, marigold, and Zinnia; a.

supply of leaves, suitably colored and shaped; a supply ofstems; and a supply of plastic modeling material in various colors, preferably material which will not stain the skin and which .remains plastic indefinite ly, as for example the material extensively sold under the name Everedy, which [13 specially advantageous by reason of its g -permanent plasticity and power of adhesion.- For more permanent models, sealing wax or other m'aterialcapableof harden: Jng, can be used. The leaves, petalssand j stems may be made of any, suitablematerial. For example the leaves and petals may be i made of light-wood or stiff cardboard, and for some flowers the seeds of certain plants, as the cantaloupe, watermelon, pumpkin and squash, maybe usejd. The stemsmay be thin, moreor less cylindrical strips of cane,

bamboo, or rattan, these materials havingslight flexibility and at the same time sufiicient strength to withstand repeated use. Natural twigs, branches, :or thestems of livingplantsmay be used for the in makingthe models.

' 'Referri'ngto the accompanying drawings,

PFig. -7"is a perspectiveyiew of 1a flower. parts provided in the, present. 'outfitg i I I made of the Fig. 8 is a sectional carnation. I

a Fig. 9 shows one of the the-model illustrated in Fig. 9.

trated in Fig. 6. couragement 1n the hablt of observation with a view to closer copylng of natural same purpose .jendsof a suitable number of petals are now Fig, 4 .showsfseveral leaves of different Fig. 9 is a view] showing a model "of a Fig. 10 shows a leaf form of the rose type. a p 'i' I 11 shows one of the envelope containers fol-parts provided in the outlit illus- The petals shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 resemble in shape those of the daisy, Zinnia, and marigold, respectively, and may be suitably colored. For example those at 10, Fig.

petals used i1! 1 1, may be white or orange, to suitthe coin- .mon field daisy or the variety known as Black-eyed Susan. Those shown. at 11,

other color or shade" suitable for making :Zinnias. The petals shown at 12, Fig. 3,

are seeds and may also be colored, as for example an orange shade for making marigolds. The leaves shown at 13, 1 1, 15, in Flg. 4, are of course colored green, prefershown at 16, 17, in Fig. 5.

A daisy made with the parts shown is illustrated in Fig. 7, using petals 10, stem 17, and leaf 1 1. In making thisflower (see Fig. 8) a head. is formed, which may consist offa small mass 18 of green plastic materialjshapedto the form ofa calyx at the end of the stem, and on the calyx a, small body 19 of yellow modeling material, which isrounded with the lingers to resemble the center of the flower, is mounted. The re semblance can be enhanced by stippling this center with a pin or other sharp. instrument,

as will be readily understood. The pointed .Fig. 2, may be colored red, yellow, or any thrust into theflowerfhead, along the plane ofdivision between the two parts 18, 19, to I form the corolla of the flower, after which a leaf 14 maybe affixed to the ste1n, as in ,,'Fig. 7 by, means ofa small bit of modeling material 20, molded around the stem and end of the leaf with the fingers, 7

Fig; 9 illustrates a model of acarnation, composedgof' a head or calyx 30, stem 17,

leaves l lheld on the stem by plastic modeling material 31, andpetals 32, which may be mofthesh'ape shown inFig. 9, colored white, jpink, orred. A 1; 6

By using one of the short thin stems 16, Fig. 5, and leaves 15, Fig. 4, a leaf-form of the type shown in Fig. 10 may be made, fastening the leaves to the stem by means of modeling material :at 21.

As stated above, the-leaves and petals-are preferably made of thin pieces of wood, which may be about one thirty-second of an inch thick with the grain running lengthwise of the'leaf or petal, and the stems are preferably made of thin strips of rattan. These materials are suificiently absorbent to be readily colored by dipping. Any suitable dyes or stains may be used for the latter purpose, preferably stains or dyes which are I 'not soluble in water so as to prevent discoloring the lingers in handling the articles. Stiff cardboard may be used for the leaves and petals, but such material is'not preferred, since it is apt to lose its stiffness and also because it creases easily, thereby rendering thearticle virtually useless. Thin,

light sheet metal, as for example tinplate or aluminum, may be employed, and offers certain advantages, as for example the capability of bending without breaking, thereby "enabling' the leaves and petals to be shaped to 'a closer-resemblance to nature.

On the other hand, thin sheets of basswood,

beech, or maple, are extremely light in weight, tough enough to suffer considerable bending, both with and against the grain, without splitting or break1-ng,-and when so bent their springiness causes them to resume their original shapeafter release.

The modeling material is preferably of the permanently plastic or non-drying type, since it permits the flower models to be readily disassembled for re-use *of the parts at any time, and also because material capable of hardening by drying, as is the case with ordinary modeling clay, changes its consistency with age unless kept in airtight contamers. But my invention contemplates the use of such material if desired, ora material like sealing waX,-which requires slight heating to make it =pla'stic,-as for example forv making flower models of a more permanent character. 'In general, however, flower models made with the Everedy material (mentioned here'inbefore) for securing the parts together Will hold their form 1n- .definitely if not disturbed by-rough handlin a The modellng 11121136 3131, stemsyand other desired plantor flower elements-are-prefen ably put up as illustrated in Fig. 6. The shallow rectan'gularbox 22,- having a lid 28, is provided 'along one side with a tray or compartment containing stems, and at one end with aitray or compartment 25 containing a supply of the plastic modeling material in suitable colo rs,fas for example two slabs 26 of-greeirmaterial, oneof yellow, 27 and one of brown, '28. These may be made.

wrapped individually to prevent contamifit is exposed for sale. The remaining space in the box is devoted to petals and leaves, which may beenclosed inenvelopes, as 29. The envelopes, preferably made of tough transparent or semi-transparent paper, can be laid loosely in the box or they can be fastened to the bottom by adhesive to prevent"th'em"from jtnnblingabout in shipment and handling. The envelopes can be readily detached for access to their contents.

The inside of the lid may be utilized to display printed and pictorial instructions (not shown) for using'the outfit, and the envelopes may bear pictures,preferably in "colors, of "the flowers which can be made 'with the parts enclosed; as in 'Fig. 10, 'for example, which shows an envelope bearing a picture'of a cluster of flowers.

'lVith anoutfit such as described a large variety of flower and plant models can be Its use makes a deeper impress on the childs mind' than can be ordinarily 'produced' by drawing pictures, and it is in barmony with 'modernprinciples of education. which emphasize the employment of the childs hands as the most effective method of training the powers of observation and perception.

his to be understood that the invention is not limited'to the details herein specifically described but can be embodied in other forms without departure from 'its spirit.

VVhile the invention has been designed pri- "marily for childrens use as a toy or educational-article it-can be used for more serious purposes, providing a means of making ill'tlfiClll flowers and foliage for decorative and other purposes.

I claim- 1. An outfit for'making plant models, comprising a plurality-of plant elements of light relatively stiff material, and permanently plastic modeling material for securing the plant elements together in simulation of nature and permitting disassembly of the plantelements for re-use.

2. An outfit for making plant models, comprising a plurality of petals and stems of relatively stilt light material, and permanently plastic modeling material for securing the petals to the stems and permitting disassembly of the petals and stems for reuse.

- 3. An outfit for making plant models, comprising a plurality of petals, leaves and stems of light relatively stiff material, shaped and colored tosimulate the corresponding parts of natural flowers,.and suitably colored permanently plastic modeling material for securing the aforesaid parts together and permitting disassembly of the petals, leaves and stems for re-use.

4. An outfit for making plant models,

for shaping to the form of calyxes and flower-centers for attachment of petals to 10 the stems and permitting disassembly for re-use of the non-plastic parts.

In testimony whereof I hereto aflix my signature.

TOM o. GRAHAM. 

